New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-12-25
KEEP YOUR MIND ON YOUR WATCH
HOW TO GUARD AGAINST PIcKPocKErs
THE WAYS IN WHICH THESE THIEVES PLUNDEA
THEIR VICTIMS


| THEIR VICTIMS
u.v. Won ever had your watch stolenf n you have
! than Won have experienced tho peculiar sensation
which crops over you whom tho hand % carelessly
dropped to take tho watch ont ana only dangling
chain f. found. No over had watch stolen
VINO ala not begin to mediate on the way was DONE
and usually no satisfactory conclusion 10 reached
An old man oame into the city fsw days ago non
Paterson He has interest in ono OF the big SIZE
mills there and h wealthy His visit was for the pur.
pose Of buying Christmas presents and he had severA
hundred dollars In bills besides gold watch and di~
mond scarf pin. He Is naturally timd man and haa
his weather eye open for thieves His pocketboox
was his left trousers pocket and his watch was IN
his waistcoat on tho same side His coat WAS but
toned I'D close to his chin that none of tho g1"
nneerod fellows could get q chance at his property.
Tie walked through Foureenthst. from the s'xu
Avenue Elevated Road TO Broadway. mahe purooss
and when he looked for his money found nothing
His watch and pin also gone and only the dangling
chain remained There mover a more surprised
man in this world and all that he could tell Inspector
Byrnes tho robbery was that no had been ]oSo
by several men in Fourteenth-st aeon after leaving
the train, but he had not seen them do anything
HOW THE THIEVES WORK.
In the plckpockets vocabulary he had been pun
through the push and pulp gamo To 90 THIS re-
quires mob, of four or five men, besides inc "re'
which ia the term applied to the man who does the
trcks One OF tho "mcb' Is selected 10 90 .hs
a touching This consists of passing the fingers
gently over persons pockets TO determine X he Is
worth robbing. 1t Is dono always In crowd. II
everytbing Is all right. tho "toucher' gives signh
and indicates by signs where the property Is. Ihs
"mob- passes In front OF the victim and the "r~
and fence" come up from behind At signai one
Of tho mob stumbes and falls on the Vnumi
who ia nearly thrown oh his Mo-
siby TO keep him from falling. and then the wires
h ,nl~ IL, ITO work Whatever property Is secured
il gyer to the fence" who goes OF Le Hash Tho
Job f. done at high speed and when II Is over iho
thieves depart in different directions. The mo's
famous thief In this line OF work a Poodle Murphy
He has great nerve and hand that moves more quickly
than the eve can well follow IT, Poodle stole ex-
Secretary Robesn's watch in this way In Philadelphia.
AMI said 10 have committed more robbertes than any
rickpockets in the country. He Is usually heard
from during the holiday season. this being the time
when the pckpcke'S try to lay in stock enough to
carry them over to the opening Of the summer re-
sCTs.
STEALING ~ TIE STEEET CARS
There are several other ways in which this class q
thieves do th.ir work Tho horse "trck7 IS a
favorlte one. and Deafy7 Price IS a master " this
II Is done With a newspaper an overcoat slnng over
the arm or one with hoe, In tho pockets II requires
great boldncss and confidence The thief sts by the
de Of tho Victim. always in a crowded some
Tho quiet method carried out By dropping tie
carelessly on the lap and turning IN the seat as II to
look out OF the window II the pocket IS tght tie
thief VIII cGhH~ e,s up tho cdort Dr. CIT the cloth
The thi'f wo h. I'm tic same W iy with the Iockctess
coat. II he secures ANYTHING lie leaves the car at
once When force Is used 1t Is done when a car gives
a sudden lurrh and tho hand IS driven In and out ot
tho pocket s. quickly tha The vlctin link, that mo
pressure was on the outside If his clothes. Women
are often robbed I'm this way, an while 1t might seem
be dangerous. 10 l. said to be comparatively safe for
the thief Molly Hocy Is the most silfnl woman
In this branch Of robbery and is known 70 the dctec-
tives Of all the large cities. When ovcrcoat or
shawl is carried the It is usually for tto
purpose OF stealing a watch from passenger either
getting or OF the car. Tho arm with the coat on
IS held al the eight OF persons chin and the thief
" ia tho other hand slips out the waich. snaps out
tho ring with tho thumb and finger and leaves tho
chain hanging
PRETENDING To Re AFFT ICTED.
some pickpockets make specially Of plying thelr
trade at church fairs aud funerals Funeral VOLS,
whose face would make undertaken weep with
envy, and sophia Lyons, tho wife OF " Ned Lyons,
the tank burglar. who Is said to be The oily W. man
who escaped from Sing sing. aro AZ the head u
ali tho thieves in this line. Everybody IS supposed
be honest at church fairs and funerals and there
little fear Of detection. Ne mcruer Wols more
freely than Funeral Wells, though his excess
OF grief leads his hand TO fall spaSmodlcaly into his
neighbours pocket.
Then thcro IS tho depot pickpockct and another
class work the rail- Dad trains. louise J0rian
the vito Of Tom Barlow. the bank burglar cNcels
all tho other railroad thieves In tho country. shs
Is charming tahcr. modest In appearance and 50 lazy
like that you wuud hesitate 10 accuse her even II you
found her nd I'm your pOcket Shn had the lower
part Of her ear, for stealing I'm Brazil. but hides
tho deformity with her hair She has travelled all
over tho world aud paid her way by stealing
wABNING FROM INSPECTOR BYRNEs.
Plcipochcts cannot DO recognized by their appear
They dress well but never 80 a. to attract at
In nd
hands are not sollcd by work 1hoy are qucA"Itied
and always play the innocent whom caught. Usually
they have fence travelling with them SO that no
stolen property Is found on them They are sOVa
Judges OF human nature AMI their entire system oI
robbery Is based diStractng the attention "hcn
lLspcvtor Byrncs asked 10 explain the pest means
To protect property carried the person, he replica.
Keep your mind watch ana You IL never u>.
it At this season OF the year everyone ehouu
boar IN mind tho Inspectors alvice, a. tho cry
Ovcnun with plokpochcs.